The A Tale Dark and Grimm
series by Adam Gidwitz is one of my favorite series ever. I would say
everyone should read it, but that's not true. The series is written
for a slightly younger audience, and is more under the category of
juvenile fiction than young adult. However, it is still an amazing
series.
The
first book, A Tale Dark and Grimm,
is about Hansel and Gretel, siblings, and has a strange and wonderful
narrator who occasionally jumps in, wondering about the characters'
actions, or warning you when something gory is about to happen. As
Adam Gidwitz (the narrator) says:
You
see, there is another story in Grimm's Fairy Tales.
A story that winds all throughout that moldy, mysterious, tome—like
a trail of breadcrumbs winding through a forest. It appears in
tales you may never have heard, like Faithful Johannes
and Brother and Sister.
And in some that you have—Hansel and Gretel,
for instance.
It
is the story of two children—a girl named Gretel and a boy named
Hansel—traveling through a magical and terrifying world. (2-3)
The
second book, In a Glass Grimmly,
is about Jack and Jill, cousins, as they travel through adventures
famous people, like the Grimm brothers, Mother Goose, and Joseph
Jacobs, later wrote down. However, some parts of their story were
forgotten. . .
Adam
Gidwitz tells us:
This
book is the tale of two such children: a boy named Jack, and a girl
named Jill. . . Their story is terrifying. It is revolting. It is
horrible.
It is
the most horrible fairy tale I have ever heard.
Also,
it is beautiful. Not sweet. Not cute. Beautiful. . . (3)
The
third and final book, The Grimm Conclusion,
is about Jorinda and Joringle (Adam Gidwitz makes sure you pronounce
their names correctly), as they journey through even more Grimm
tales. Of the third book, Adam Gidwitz says:
In
fact, it is the grimmest, Grimmest, tale that I have ever heard.
And I am
sharing it with you (4).
These
stories are amazing. I would tell you to go read them right now and
quit reading this post, but. . .
It'll be
better if I just let Adam Gidwitz explain:
Before
I go on, a word of warning: Grimm's stories—the ones that weren't
changed for little kids—are violent and bloody. And what you're
going to hear now, the one true tale in The Tales of
Grimm, is as violent and bloody
as you can imagine.
Really.
So if
such things bother you, we should probably stop right now.
You
see, the land of Grimm can be a harrowing place. But it is worth
exploring. For, in life, it is in the darkest zones one finds the
brightest beauty and the most luminous wisdom.
And,
of course, the most blood. (3)
(This quote is from the first book.)
(This quote is from the first book.)
I will
let you use your better judgment about whether or not you would like
these books. These books make me so happy, I hug them. Wherever I am.
I have hugged them at the lunch table at school before.
They
are on the breath of a Dragon's wing.
Spruce Nogard
Attributions:
Thanks for a great blog post, Spruce! You make these books sound amazing!
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